We invest time and energy to build great relationships with our suppliers as well as our customers. Fluidlink Hydraulics is a British manufacturer of mobile hydraulic power packs and valve packs. It has worked closely with us for more than ten years – helping us to deliver the innovative custom hydraulics and high-tech solutions for which we’re known.

We work with Hydraulics Online to provide solutions that other companies wouldn’t be able to – Martin Belbin, Operations & Technical Manager, Fluidlink Hydraulics

As a quality British engineering business, Fluidlink Hydraulics invests heavily in its machinery, software, skills and technology and operates a 100% testing protocol. The vast majority of its customers use Fluidlink for the design, manufacture and build service it offers to OEM clients. However, its partnership with Hydraulics Online brings some more unusual and technically challenging custom hydraulics work its way.

Custom Hydraulics – Engineering Bespoke Solutions

Fluidlink Hydraulic’s Operations & Technical Manager, Martin Belbin, says: “Hydraulics Online are always different. We’ve manufactured a bespoke power pack for the hydraulic systems to lift a 400kg marble kitchen worktop. We’ve even manufactured a system to control the nose on Concorde. Because we have manufacturing capability here, we can be very flexible and make very small quantities and one-offs if required.”

The businesses have been working closely together since 2006 and Martin says the two companies complement each other well.

“The power packs we manufacture are only one component in a hydraulic solution. You also need cylinders, motors, hoses, and the control gear. Not only does Hydraulics Online have very good relationships with the distributors of these other components, they also have the product knowledge that goes along with them.”

“They can take our designs and say ‘if we put it with this component, it will work in that application’. It means we can work together to develop an optimal custom hydraulics solution. Hydraulics Online is completely independent, so we can choose the best components for the job and, most importantly, we can be very competitive on price.”

Good Collaboration

As well as developing a range of power packs for Hydraulics Online, it isn’t uncommon for the two businesses to take a brief from the end customer together in order to work closely on the design stages of a project.

“When a client has an unusual requirement, Hydraulics Online will do the initial problem-solving for them, then we can do the bespoke engineering side behind it. Combining the products and product knowledge of Hydraulics Online and integrating that with our bespoke solutions is the best of both worlds,” says Martin.

A Very Unusual Requirement

This teamwork paid dividends on a very usual job in early 2017. A client approached Hydraulics Online for a very particular set of requirements for operating an extruding machine. It needed to run a very large cylinder very slowly at the same time as a hydraulic motor was required to turn quickly. Martin says: “it was the two extremes of hydraulics in a single system”.

The client had a very specific set of requirements, so it was important that all three companies worked together so an appropriate solution could be offered.

Our relationship with Hydraulics Online means that we are able to be very competitive – Martin Belbin, Operations & Technical Manager, Fluidlink Hydraulics

Despite the complexity and unconventional specification, the close working relationship enabled Hydraulics Online and Fluidlink to design and propose a solution within two weeks, with just another four weeks required to manufacture, build and deliver it once approved.

The finished solution included both a 11Kw motor coupled with a large 18cc pump capable of producing a flow rate of 27L per minute at 200 bar pressure, and a 0.25Kw with a 0.166cc pump delivering a flow rate of 0.01L per minute under 200 bar of pressure, plus a 100L tank and a single power pack on a large frame that fit the client’s exact dimensions. This involved a bespoke distribution manifold and a bespoke control manifold built by Fluidlink Hydraulics, so that all aspects could be controlled, including setting the speed and torque on the motors.

Martin says: “We love working with Hydraulics Online. Their technical knowledge is excellent. They have all sorts of challenging enquiries which makes life very interesting. Because of our combined expertise, when we work with them, we know we are going to be able to push the boundaries a bit and think outside the box.”

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